As govt yet to decide on higher commission:Petrol pumps threaten ‘weekly off’ every Sunday from 10 May

Petrol dealers have threatened a ‘weekly off’ every Sunday after May 10 if their demand for an increase in dealer’s commission is not fulfilled by the government till that date.

The decision was taken in the meeting of Consortium of Indian Petroleum Dealers (CPID), which was attended by representatives from various states.

The dealers also announced that the petrol pumps will remain open only for eight hours in a day across the country after May 10.

Ravi Shinde of the Petrol Dealers’ Association said,”We had withdrawn the strike threat in January after oil marketing companies assured to revise dealer commission rates. But nothing happened in four months.”

With no response coming in from the government’s side on its previous demand for higher commission, owners of petrol pumps in the country have threatened to go on strike by taking a ‘weekly off’ every Sunday. Petrol pump don’t take weekly offs as of now.

Shinde said that the petrol dealers in the country were following PM’s message by cutting fuel costs per day by shutting down the petrol pumps every Sunday starting 14 May.

According to a Indian Oil Corporation circular, dealer commission on petrol stands at Rs 2.56 per litre, while a commission of Rs 1.65 per litre is paid to dealers on sale of diesel as on 1 April.

From 15 May (Monday), dealers will operate single shift (9 am – 6 pm)to cut costs till that time the business becomes viable, said Ravi Shinde.

The association will also submit a memorandum to the oil marketing companies and to senior officials in Petroleum ministry in this connection.

Citing Apoorva Chandra committee report, he said dealers should be getting a commission of Rs 3.33 per litre on petrol and Rs 2.13 a litre on sale of diesel.

“Oil Marketing Companies, however, have not honoured the written committment of giving dealer margins in line with Apoorva Chandra Committee report,” he said.

Consortium of Indian Petroleum Dealers (CPID) National president, AB Sathyanarayan, claimed that the unconcerned attitude of the top management of the public sector oil companies forced them to take the extreme decision.

“The Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gases appointed the Apurva Chandra Committee in 2010 which had recommended margin money to be given to the dealers. However, the oil companies partly implemented the report of the committee and clause of margin money was overlooked since 2011. In the absence of margin money payment in the last seven years, the petrol and diesel retailers were unable to bear the increasing cost of lighting, human resources and other facilities at the filling stations in the multiple shifts,”he said.

Dealer remuneration is worked out at Rs 30,000 per month for 170 KL of fuel as against the current remuneration of Rs 12,000 per month.

While the government is yet to take a decision on upward revision in dealers’ commission, the Centre is currently working on ways to lessen the burden of volatility in fuel rates for vehicle owners.

Last week, a media report said the country may soon have to get used to change in fuel prices on a daily basis, unlike the current fortnightly change in fuel prices.

The government is working on a plan to introduce fuel price change at the retail outlets on a daily basis, sources said.

For customers, the proposed move could be beneficial as prices of petrol and diesel are unlikely to change much on a daily basis, barring a few paise.

“Daily price revision is about introducing international standards in the Indian fuel retail market. It helps both customers as well as dealers in managing their purchase”

Currently, state oil firms Indian Oil Corp, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum control around 95 percent share of the retail market, and with automation taking strides in several retail outlets, daily price changes may not be that difficult for the companies.

According to a Indian Oil Corporation circular, dealer commission on petrol stands at Rs 2.56 per litre, while a commission of Rs 1.65 per litre is paid to dealers on sale of diesel as on 1 April.